Modern cars generally have stereo that has built-in Bluetooth for connection from mobile devices. For cars that do not have Bluetooth capable stereos, it is feasible to add such support to the stereo if it has an AUX port. This blog will show you how to turn your car stereo into a Bluetooth enabled stereo.
Items to prepare:
1. A Bluetooth speaker adapter like the "Logitech Wireless Speaker Adapter."
Items to prepare:
1. A Bluetooth speaker adapter like the "Logitech Wireless Speaker Adapter."
2. A 5V output DC Car Adapter. Some car chargers for mobile game devices fit the spec.
3. A stereo cable with 3.5mm plugs on both ends.
Installation and configuration:
The "Logitech Wireless Speaker Adapter" comes with a square device box, an AC adapter and a composite audio cable:
Before installation of the adapter in the car, hook it up to the house power outlet to power it up and pair it with a smartphone by pressing the "Connect" button(please follow the adapter's user's guide for the complete pairing detail):
On the smartphone, open the Bluetooth setting to find a "Logitech Adapter" device among Available Devices to pair.
Click the discovered "Logitech Adapter" to pair with the smartphone, when they are paired, the "Paired devices" list on the smartphone will show the adapter's name and the "Connected to media audio" string, and the light on the adapter will become "solid green".
After pairing the adapter with a smartphone, unplug it from the house power outlet and bring it to the car for installation. The installation here will be in a 2008 Subaru Impreza which has factory installed stereo system.
The Impreza has a compartment between the front seats. Inside the compartment, it has an AUX port and a 12V power socket for a car adapter. This compartment is perfect for installing the wireless speaker adapter:
The installation is simple, plug in the car power adapter, plug one end of the 3.5mm audio cable to the wireless speaker adapter and the other to the AUX port. Then place the wireless speaker adapter, audio cable and car adapter cable inside the compartment:
Now turn on the car power, switch the car stereo input to AUX. On the smartphone, connect to the Logitech Adapter paired earlier and launch a music app to play some music. The music will be output through the car's speakers as expected:
If the car's stereo does not have an AUX port, an option to hook up the wireless speaker adapter is to use a cassette tape adapter like shown in the picture below. But its output quality cannot compare to using the AUX port, and routing its cable to the compartment will not be pretty.
